02 Aug 2014
Herald Island Circumnavigation
Despite unseasonably heavy ice in unlikely places and thick fog challenging our progress, we have still experienced some excellent landings and Zodiac cruises. Yesterday we were all set for a landing at Dream Head when the fog descended like a blanket which unfortunately put paid to the excursion. It is not advisable to go walking in these conditions on Wrangel Island – Polar Bears are very hard to see in the fog! We spent this morning at Herald Island, a tiny (and very seldom visited) island to the east of Wrangel and made what is possibly the first ever Zodiac circumnavigation of the island. We optimistically began our trip in foggy conditions and were rewarded by finishing it in brilliant sunshine. As I write this we are transiting back through the ice to Wrangel Island and everybody is on Polar Bear alert. So far we have seen about 15 animals this afternoon and still have a couple hours to go.
We operated three Zodiac excursions in brilliant sunshine at Wrangel Island yesterday. In the morning we took a cruise through the sea ice to look f…READ MORE
We arrived off Wrangel Island late yesterday afternoon. The ice maps showed a belt of heavier ice along the south coast and our radio discussion with…READ MORE
We made a rare landing on Cape Dezhnev, the north-eastern point of the Eurasian continent and also the closest point to Alaska. It is often difficult…READ MORE